Mayor Karen Bass announced on April 11 that she has selected Malaika Billups as the new general manager of the Department of Personnel.

Currently serving as the assistant city administrative officer, Billups brings decades of experience in the public and private sectors. She will provide the Personnel Department with strategic leadership to support the city workforce, implement strategies to reduce the city’s liability payments and improve hiring practices, Bass said.

Billups will lead the department following Grayce Liu’s service as interim general manager. Under Liu’s leadership, the department activated the Disaster Service Worker program to staff the Disaster Recovery Center in response to the Palisades fire, helped guide implementation of the city’s new HR/Payroll system and provided continuity in serving departments that depend on personnel.

The modernization of city hiring practices is paramount to efforts to change the status quo and deliver essential needs, Bass said. It currently takes months for someone to be hired by the city of Los Angeles. In that time, qualified individuals receive offers from neighboring cities, reducing the talent pool. The mayor said Billups’ appointment is an important step toward transforming, streamlining and modernizing the city’s hiring practices.

In her previous role as assistant city administrative officer, Billups supported the annual budget process and labor and employee relations, and developed financial management practices for city departments. Prior to joining the Office of the City Administrative Officer, Billups was the chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer for the Department of Personnel, overseeing the implementation of a comprehensive Workplace Equity Policy and developing the city’s Culture and Climate Survey. She began her career with the city as deputy city attorney in the Labor Relations Division.